Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
The Business Experiments illustrated that Grid computing is not only optimizing the
management of ICT in companies, but that it can also provide strategic advantage
to companies. Thus, the introduction of Grid is a strategic decision that is not only a
matter of the IT department, but must be taken and supported by top management.
The operationalization of the strategic decision is then a task of the IT department.
The introduction of Grid requires substantial organizational and governance
changes and regulations that can be summarized in the following thematic areas:
• Sourcing and deployment of IT infrastructure:
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Choice and decision which processes and resources might by outsourced, i.e.
supported by external infrastructure.
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Justification when, how and why access to external resources is needed.
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Company rules for selecting and establishing relationships with external util-
ity computing, SaaS and VO providers.
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Rules and policies for using of SaaS offered by Clouds by employees.
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Guidelines and templates for defining the contractual relationships with ex-
ternal providers.
• Security and privacy policies:
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Policies for secure communication with external providers: the SaaS, utility
computing, and VO provider.
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Access policies - who and under which condition is allowed to access ex-
ternal resources.
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Policies for storage of data on external resources.
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Privacy policies specialized for a grid environment.
Furthermore, integrated monitoring support for an environment with mixed internal
and external resources is required.
In summary, the introduction of Grid computing in companies is a substan-
tial change process that requires change in the mindset how IT is organized and
managed in organizations. It is typically a stepwise and evolutionary process that
provides the companies sufficient time to adjust and accommodate changes inferred
by each evolutionary step.
13.4.2 Evolution from Grid to Cloud Computing
While the applicability of Grid computing is still under consideration and evalua-
tion in companies, Cloud computing is creating a new hype and opportunity. The
definition and differences of Grid and Cloud computing are still subject to debate in
science and their applicability in business is raising increasing attention in industry.
According to Foster et al. (2008):
“… Cloud Computing not only overlaps with
Grid Computing, it is indeed evolved out of Grid Computing and relies on Grid
Computing as its backbone and infrastructure support. The evolution has been a
result of a shift in focus from an infrastructure that delivers storage and compute
resources (such is the case in Grids) to one that is economy based aiming to deliver
more abstract resources and services (such is the case in Clouds)”
. The experi-
ences made with the Business Experiments in the BEinGRID project show a strong
